Pregnancy and Postpartum Pilates
Schedule to work privately or in a small group with one of our certified Pre & Post-Natal Specialists! Our Pre & Post-Natal Specialists have been trained to teach holistic programs specifically designed to improve the health and wellbeing of women through their childbearing years.
All the exercises taught are designed to be especially kind to your changing body. The stretching and deep breathing that are part of each exercise also help combat the day-to-day stresses that accompany parenthood. Gradually, the workouts increase in difficulty and intensity. They will help you lose weight, firm your muscles, and build core strength and stability in order to give you the body you deserve.
Pilates is about finding the balance in your life. As a mother, every hour of the day is accounted for before you get out of bed, so your time—and time for you—is more precious than ever.
BENEFITS DURING PREGNANCY
A More Comfortable Pregnancy—Pregnant women who practice Pilates notice that they carry their pregnancy more comfortably. They found that Pilates exercises helped them develop good breath control and kept them fit during their pregnancy. The practice of efficient breathing also improves the oxygen supply to mother and baby, reduces shortness of breath during pregnancy and aiding breathing during labor.
Your Pelvic Floor—Pregnant women who practice Pilates notice that they carry their pregnancy more comfortably. They found that Pilates exercises helped them develop good breath control and kept them fit during their pregnancy. The practice of efficient breathing also improves the oxygen supply to mother and baby, reduces shortness of breath during pregnancy and aiding breathing during labor.
Address Alignment Issues—Pilates exercises differ from other fitness techniques by targeting the deep postural muscles, building strength from the inside out. By developing core stability, you can re-balance your body and bring it into correct postural alignment. As your baby grows inside you, your entire center of gravity shifts. To compensate for all of these changes, your body has to adjust. We take into consideration how your pregnant body changes during each stage of pregnancy and offer modifications to suit the varying levels of fitness at every stage.
POSTPARTUM BENEFITS
Rediscover Your Pelvic Floor—After you've given birth, your pelvic muscles have become weakened. Pilates exercises work to strengthen and tighten your pelvic floor muscles. Reestablishing a connection with your pelvic floor, then strengthening it will help zero in on back pain and poor posture habits.
Connecting your Abdominals—You can begin to renovate your body significantly, especially your pregnancy midsection, practically within weeks of giving birth. Through simple exercises, we can reconnect your abdominals (diastasis), increasing support for the back, and in alleviating back pain.
Strengthen Your Abdominal Muscles—You will discover that Pilates exercises focus on the muscle groups that are strained during your pregnancy and delivery. In combination with Pilates movements, you will learn a variety of exercise techniques that will work the full range of abdominal muscles. It is critical that we address weakness in the abdominals within months of delivery because the abdominal muscles support the back. Carrying around your new baby and all your baby’s gear requires a stronger, healthier back!
Realign Your Body—Pilates addresses postural alignment and stability, which pregnant women compromise by the shifting the center of gravity during the prenatal period. Your alignment does not automatically reverse to its pre-pregnant state after childbirth. Pilates focuses intensively on correcting your alignment. Each exercise trains your body to move within the natural limits of your own skeletal frame.
Pre-natal & Postpartum Yoga
Prenatal Yoga classes offer a safe community environment where pregnant women can enjoy movement and breath within their changing bodies. Modified yoga postures can aid in relieving common pregnancy issues such as: lower back discomfort, nausea, digestion, tension in hips and shoulders, swelling, sciatica, heartburn, varicose veins, constipation etc. Movement, breath, and strengthening of the pelvic floor and uterus muscles, and visualization promote positive wellbeing in women during pregnancy, as well as in labor and birth.
Post-natal Yoga classes create a space for mothers and babies (newborn up to crawling) to enjoy community, movement, and bonding between themselves and other mothers and babies. Modified yoga postures can aid in strengthening the pelvic floor, core abdominal and back muscles, improve balance, release tension in shoulders and back, and support the postnatal healing process. Mothers engage in postures with their babies, as well as enjoy relaxation during the last half of the class. Mothers are encouraged to attend to the needs of their baby at any time during the class: feeding, diapering, holding, walking around with baby etc. Mothers are also welcome to attend without their babies.